<!DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.0 Transitional//EN">
<HTML><HEAD>
<META content="text/html; charset=windows-1252" http-equiv=Content-Type>
<META name=GENERATOR content="MSHTML 8.00.6001.19222">
<STYLE></STYLE>
</HEAD>
<BODY bgColor=#dbdbdb>
<DIV><STRONG><FONT size=2></FONT></STRONG> </DIV>
<DIV>From NASA RELEASE: 12-161<BR><BR>SPACEX LAUNCHES NASA DEMONSTRATION MISSION
TO SPACE STATION<BR><BR>CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- The second demonstration mission
for NASA's <BR>Commercial Orbital Transportation Services (COTS) program is
under <BR>way as SpaceX's Falcon 9 rocket and Dragon spacecraft lifted off
<BR>Tuesday from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida at 3:44 a.m.
<BR>EDT. <BR><BR>"I want to congratulate SpaceX for its successful launch and
salute <BR>the NASA team that worked alongside them to make it happen," NASA
<BR>Administrator Charles Bolden said. "Today marks the beginning of a <BR>new
era in exploration; a private company has launched a spacecraft <BR>to the
International Space Station that will attempt to dock there <BR>for the first
time. And while there is a lot of work ahead to <BR>successfully complete this
mission, we are certainly off to good <BR>start. Under President Obama's
leadership, the nation is embarking <BR>upon an ambitious exploration program
that will take us farther into <BR>space than we have ever traveled before,
while helping create <BR>good-paying jobs right here in the United States of
America." <BR><BR>The Dragon capsule will conduct a series of checkout
procedures to <BR>test and prove its systems, including the capability to
rendezvous <BR>and berth with the International Space Station. On Thursday, May
24, <BR>Dragon will perform a flyby of the space station at a distance of
<BR>approximately 1.5 miles to validate the operation of sensors and <BR>flight
systems necessary for a safe rendezvous and approach. Live <BR>NASA TV coverage
beginning at 2:30 a.m. <BR><BR>Following analysis of the flyby by NASA and
SpaceX managers, the <BR>Dragon capsule will be cleared to rendezvous and berth
with the space <BR>station on Friday, May 25, marking the first time a
commercial <BR>company has attempted this feat. The Expedition 31 crew on board
the <BR>station will use the orbiting complex's robotic arm to capture Dragon
<BR>and install it on the bottom side of the Harmony node. NASA TV will
<BR>provide live coverage beginning at 2 a.m. <BR>For up-to-date SpaceX mission
information and a schedule of NASA TV <BR>coverage, visit: <BR><BR><A
href="http://www.nasa.gov/spacex">http://www.nasa.gov/spacex</A>
</DIV></BODY></HTML>